"What is this?"
Ye Ling noticed the three fine needles behind Zhang Zhiyue's head, his eyes narrowing slightly.
Zhang Zhiyue had long hair, and the three fine needles were hidden beneath it, piercing his scalp. If Ye Ling hadn't scanned Zhang Zhiyue's entire body with his divine soul while subduing him, he might not have discovered the needles.
Without hesitation, Ye Ling pulled out the three needles. Zhang Zhiyue's blood-red eyes quickly returned to normal, and the restless spiritual energy within him calmed down.
"Interesting... mere needles could alter a person's mental state. It seems the one who used them is very knowledgeable about the human body."
"These needles... seem extraordinary as well."
After removing the needles, Ye Ling used his divine soul to examine Zhang Zhiyue's brain. He found that the three needles had just touched the surface of his brain, blocking Zhang Zhiyue's cognition and causing his internal spiritual energy to become chaotic.
With just this move, the needle user's medical skill was peerless in this era!
Moreover, although the three fine needles were incredibly small, they were carved with extremely intricate patterns.
Carving complex patterns on needles less than five millimeters long would be quite difficult even with modern technology, yet these three needles had been inserted into Zhang Zhiyue's head for decades!
Possessing such craftsmanship decades ago, the needle user's methods were not to be underestimated.
"Master Ye, what exactly happened?"
Seeing that Ye Ling had subdued the rampaging Zhang Zhiyue, Zhang Xiaoxia asked with lingering fear.
If she had retreated any slower, she might have had her head twisted off by Zhang Zhiyue!
"Someone deliberately put Zhang Zhiyue into a state of madness, seemingly not wanting him to wake up," Ye Ling said, removing the cage that had bound Zhang Zhiyue. At the same time, he used his own spiritual energy to help Zhang Zhiyue's spiritual energy return to its proper course, eliminating his qi deviation.
Ye Ling had previously practiced the "Great Dao Heart Art," and knew the characteristics of this cultivation technique.
The "Great Dao Heart Art" was an extremely profound cultivation technique on Earth, even touching upon the immortal level. Forcibly reversing the circulation of the technique would lead to qi deviation, but it could also borrow the powerful burst of energy to heal injuries and prolong life.
After falling into qi deviation, due to the special nature of the meridians in the "Great Dao Heart Art," it would automatically repair the spiritual energy circulation routes, and those in qi deviation would recover within ten years.
Ye Ling estimated that Zhang Zhiyue had planned to confine himself here for ten years, and then emerge after the qi deviation state ended. However, he hadn't expected an outsider to interfere, disrupting all his plans and causing his qi deviation state to last for decades, until today!
The characteristic of the "Great Dao Heart Art" to self-repair qi deviation was unknown even to members of the Zheng Yi Sect like Zhang Muya. Yet, the person who used the needles knew this perfectly well. With just three needles less than five millimeters long, they had blocked Zhang Zhiyue's hope of recovery, wasting decades of his life.
If Ye Ling were told that the person who used the needles had no close connection to the Zheng Yi Sect, he would never believe it.
"Someone deliberately didn't want Uncle-Master to wake up?"
Hearing Ye Ling's words, Zhang Muya was immediately startled. "Why would they do that?"
Ye Ling replied, "You'll have to ask Zhang Zhiyue."
"After keeping Zhang Zhiyue in a state of madness, Ye Feng still had Zhuge Feng come to control Zhang Zhiyue. It's very likely they wanted to extract some secret from Zhang Zhiyue's mouth."
"And that kind of secret cannot be obtained through soul searching."
Ye Ling was gradually accepting the fact that soul searching was not as effective on Earth.
In fact, on the East Xuan Continent, major families and sects had various countermeasures against soul searching to prevent their secret techniques from being leaked. Therefore, soul searching was actually an efficient yet often useless method, only yielding unexpected results at certain specific times.
After returning to Earth, Ye Ling found that because various extraordinary individuals lacked countermeasures against soul searching, his initial crude and brutal interrogation method was always effective. However, after interacting more with the Hong Chen Pavilion, he discovered that any extraordinary individual with any connection to the Hong Chen Pavilion had various countermeasures in their minds, often leading to self-destruction.
In terms of anti-soul searching, the Hong Chen Pavilion's level was almost catching up to the East Xuan Continent.
With the foundation laid by the Hong Chen Pavilion members, Ye Ling was not surprised that Zhang Zhiyue's memories had special countermeasures.
After shedding the state of qi deviation, Zhang Zhiyue's complexion gradually became ruddy, and his breathing returned to normal.
Ye Ling waited for a moment, and Zhang Zhiyue finally woke up completely.
Zhang Zhiyue found himself lying on the ground, with two unfamiliar young men and women standing beside him, staring at him. A hint of confusion flashed in his eyes.
He slowly got up, "Where am I..."
"Uncle-Master? You're really awake?"
At this moment, Zhang Muya's trembling voice reached Zhang Zhiyue's ears. Zhang Zhiyue looked over and saw the white-haired, stooped Zhang Muya looking at him, her eyes moist.
"Mu... Muya? How did you become like this?"
Zhang Zhiyue couldn't believe his eyes. In his memory, Zhang Muya was still a beautiful woman with lingering charm. How could she be like this now...
Zhang Zhiyue asked in confusion, "How long have I been asleep?"
"Uncle-Master, you've slept for seventy years!" Da Feng Novel Network
"Seventy years?"
Hearing Zhang Muya's words, Zhang Zhiyue was completely shocked. "Why did I fall into qi deviation for so long? The 'Great Dao Heart Art' shouldn't..."
At this moment, Ye Ling said, "Someone inserted needles into your head, obstructing your cognition and disrupting the circulation routes of your cultivation technique. It's normal that you couldn't recover."
"If those fine needles weren't removed, you probably wouldn't have woken up even until your death."
Upon hearing Ye Ling's words, Zhang Zhiyue suppressed his shock and confusion, cupped his fists towards Ye Ling, and asked, "May I ask your name..."
Zhang Muya wiped the tears from her eyes and quickly introduced Zhang Zhiyue, "Uncle-Master, this senior is Ye Ling. He saved you."
Zhang Zhiyue quickly thanked Ye Ling, "Thank you for your assistance! May I ask which sect you belong to and where you studied? I will definitely pay my respects another day!"
Zhang Muya, fearing Zhang Zhiyue would make a fool of himself, quickly said, "Uncle-Master, Lord Ye is a Ninth-Rank Red Dust Immortal. The Eighth-Rank peak Zhuge Feng is still lying over there. That was Lord Ye who just taught him a lesson."
"And it's the 21st century now. The old custom of visiting sects is no longer in vogue."
"Ninth-Rank Red Dust Immortal?"
Hearing Zhang Muya's words, Zhang Zhiyue was completely stunned.
It was only then that he noticed Zhuge Feng lying not far away, and his heart was filled with immense shock!
Even in his era of warlords and chaotic times, no Ninth-Rank Red Dust Immortal had ever appeared!
Those who were at the level of Earthly Immortals were basically old monsters from hundreds of years ago, who rarely appeared in the world.
Zhang Zhiyue, seeing Ye Ling's youth, had treated him as a junior. He never expected that he had made such a blunder!
Zhang Zhiyue quickly apologized to Ye Ling, "It was my oversight, Senior. Please forgive me."
The Red Dust Immortal was a realm he had dreamed of glimpsing. He had been at the Eighth-Rank for many years and knew how difficult it was to break through to the Ninth-Rank.
Zhang Zhiyue was one of the most promising geniuses to break through to the Ninth-Rank back then. Unfortunately, after a battle with an extraordinary individual from Yang Country, his heart meridians were severely damaged, completely cutting off his path to immortality.
Therefore, Zhang Zhiyue held infinite respect and envy for every Ninth-Rank Red Dust Immortal.
"No need to be so formal. In terms of seniority, you are my elder."
Ye Ling smiled at Zhang Zhiyue, then returned to the main topic, showing the three fine needles he had taken out. He asked Zhang Zhiyue, "These are the needles removed from you. Do you recognize them?"
Upon seeing the fine needles in Ye Ling's hand, Zhang Zhiyue's pupils contracted slightly, "Heavenly Mechanism Needles?"